The Colorado Supreme Court issued its opinion in Delacruz v. People on Monday, April 10, 2017.

Criminal Trials—Speedy Trial—Continuances.

The Colorado Supreme Court reviewed the Colorado Court of Appeals’ construction of Colorado’s speedy trial statute, C.R.S. § 18-1-405. Following Mosley v. People, 2017 15 CO 20, the court rejected Delacruz’s contention that the exclusions of time listed in subsection (6) of the statute apply only to the speedy trial calculation for an initial trial, and not for a new trial following reversal of a conviction on appeal. The court concluded that subsection (1) of the statute establishes the basic right to a speedy trial, and that subsection (2) clarifies that right by identifying the trial court’s receipt of the mandate as the event that triggers the six-month speedy trial period for a new trial following reversal of a conviction on appeal. Because a defendant’s speedy trial right—whether in an initial trial or on retrial—derives from subsection (1), the exclusions of time listed in subsection (6) apply to both an initial trial and a new trial following reversal of a conviction on appeal.

The court further rejected Delacruz’s contention that the trial court erred in granting a continuance and extending the speedy trial deadline in this case. The court therefore affirmed the judgment of the court of appeals.

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